A sneaky thief

Baseball Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett’s untimely death this last week brought to mind the day in 1996 when he announced his early retirement from the sport. He had woken up one morning in March with blurred vision, and by the end of that season, had retired. What happened? What caused Kirby Puckett, who led the Minnesota Twins to win two World Series, to leave the sport he loved? What kind of disease can make such a thing happen?

The disease is glaucoma. It is the leading cause of preventable blindness in the United States. And it is on the rise here in the CNMI. There are two scary things about glaucoma. First, you can have it for many years without even knowing it. It causes damage slowly and gradually over time, with no symptoms at all. Glaucoma steals your sight away from you. That’s why it’s often called “the sneaky thief of sight.” Second, the damage is permanent. Once glaucoma causes loss of vision, you cannot get that vision back—not through glasses or medicine or surgery or laser or diet or anything. Glaucoma causes permanent loss of vision.

The good news is that the damage from glaucoma can be prevented, but only if you know you have glaucoma and get it treated. In fact, glaucoma is the main reason that the American Association of Ophthalmology recommends that adults get an eye exam even if they have no vision problems at all: once during your 20s; twice during your 30s; and then every few years during your 40s and on. Glaucoma may be slowly and relentlessly and painlessly causing permanent damage to your eyes right now. You won’t know it. You can’t even recognize the damaging effects, because glaucoma attacks the peripheral vision. A gradual loss of peripheral vision is difficult to notice. When you finally do notice it, there will hardly be any vision left, and you won’t be able to get your vision back.

Who can get glaucoma? Anyone. But there are some people who are at higher risk. If someone else in your family has glaucoma, it puts you at higher risk. (My grandmother lost her vision to glaucoma, so I’m at risk). If you have diabetes, your chances of having glaucoma are higher. And if you are African-American, you are at high risk for glaucoma. But there are plenty of people who are Chamorro or Filipino or any ethnicity, who have no family members with glaucoma and who don’t have diabetes, who walk in for an eye exam and are found to have glaucoma. Any of us could have glaucoma and not know it.

The goal is to find glaucoma early, before it has stolen much of the sight. When it is caught early, medications can be used that will prevent further damage. Having glaucoma doesn’t mean you will lose your vision. Finding glaucoma early means you can keep your vision healthy for your entire life. Glaucoma can be controlled with medications or other treatment. It needs to be monitored regularly.

Knowing all of this, you can understand how glaucoma snuck up and stole Kirby Puckett’s sight and ended his career. It could happen to any of us, and might be happening to you right now. Find out. An eye exam can be the first step to catch this “sneaking thief of sight,” and help you keep your vision.

(David Khorram, MD is a board certified ophthalmologist and director of Marianas Eye Institute. Comments and questions are welcome. Call 235-9090 or email Excellence@MarianasEye.com. Copyright © 2006 David Khorram)